Sunday Scroll:

Established in 1881, the US Open was originally only open to members of the U.S. National Lawn Tennis Association (USNLTA, now USTA) and began exclusively as a men’s singles and doubles tournament.

• Fortunately, women didn't have to wait too long as a singles tournament was introduced in 1887, followed by doubles in 1889.

However, it wasn’t until 1950 that Althea Gibson became the first Black tennis player to enter the championship, overcoming many obstacles to get there. She went on to win the tourney in 1957 and ’58.

• Gibson paved the way for civil rights leader and legendary athlete Arthur Ashe (the namesake of the US Open’s main stadium), who in 1968 became the first player to win the competition in the “Open Era” — when amateurs and pros could compete against each other. Trailblazers.

The US Open features 128 women’s and men’s singles players competing across seven single-elimination rounds. And they’re all hoping to advance to mid-September — the women’s final is set for September 9th, followed by the men’s on September 10th.

• As for doubles, there’ll be 64 women’s and men’s pairs in action, along with 32 mixed doubles contenders. Prepare your split screen.

Of tennis’ four Grand Slams, the US Open is one of two majors contested on hard courts. Faster than the clay courts of the French Open but slower than Wimbledon’s grass, hard courts are the most neutral of playing surfaces and used most often on the professional circuit.

Let’s talk about prize money. Both the women’s and men’s singles winners will walk away with a cool $3.6M, part of a record $75M pot, up from last year’s then–record-breaking sum of $65M. Cha ching, indeed.

• And we can’t talk cash without shouting out the one and only Billie Jean King. The legend threatened to boycott the 1973 US Open due to the disparity in women’s and men’s earnings, leading the USTA to award equal prize money that same year.

🇵🇱 World No. 1 Iga Świątek: She might feel like a hamster on a wheel, but the 23-year-old hasn’t shown any signs of fatigue, owning the WTA’s top spot all season. Świątek is swinging for her sixth career Grand Slam trophy and her second in New York after winning the event in 2022.

🏅 World No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka: Perhaps Świątek’s greatest rival, Sabalenka is coming off a straight sets tournament win at last weekend’s Cincinnati Open, defeating the aforementioned world No. 1 in the semis — a welcome return to form after a shoulder injury forced her to withdraw from Wimbledon in July.

🇺🇸 World No. 3 Coco Gauff: A top-three ranking is nothing to scoff at, but it’s been a disappointing couple months for Gauff with an early exit from Cincinnati just the latest in a series of summertime struggles.

• Still, the crowd favorite is the tourney’s defending champ after becoming the first American teen to win the US open since a little someone named Serena Williams did so in 1999.

🇺🇸 World No. 6 Jessica Pegula: The Buffalo, NY product has never advanced past a Grand Slam quarter-final, but Pegula is peaking at the right time, defending her Canadian Open title earlier this month before advancing to last weekend’s Cincinnati Open final. Timing is everything, and Pegula is right on schedule.

🇨🇳 World No. 7 Qinwen Zheng: The 21-year-old was golden at the Paris Olympics, topping world No. 25 Croatia’s Donna Vekić in the final after beating Świątek in the semis. Zheng’s rise has been meteoric: She’s shot up the WTA rankings over the last three years, becoming just the second Chinese player to reach a Grand Slam final at the Australian Open in January.

🇮🇹 World No. 1 Jannik Sinner: There were no berries and cream for Sinner in Cincinnati, but the birthday boy took home a bigger prize: the tourney title, his circuit-leading fifth of the season. The 23-year-old routinely wins miraculous points…with only one healthy hip, but will the Italian phenom’s controversial anti-doping sanction derail his focus? Watch this space.

🇷🇸 World No. 2 Novak Djokovic: Sandwiched between a Gen Z youth movement in the rankings, Djokovic continues to elude Father Time. The 37-year-old is the defending US Open champ, reigning Olympic gold medalist, and is hoping to add to a trophy case that already boasts an ATP–record 24 Grand Slam titles.

🇪🇸 World No. 3 Carlos Alcaraz: Clay, grass, or hard court, the 21-year-old dominates them all, becoming the youngest man to win a major on all three surfaces. And it’s already been a career year for Alcaraz, who’s lifted two of 2024’s three Grand Slam trophies — the Prince of Clay is poised to add to his kingdom.

🇺🇸 World No. 12 Taylor Fritz: The American men are playing musical chairs in the ATP rankings, but heading into the US Open, Fritz holds the red, white, and blue’s top spot. The Californian will be looking to channel that Olympic bronze medal magic to rebound from disappointing finishes in his last three ATP tournaments.

🇨🇦 World No. 19 Félix Auger-Aliassime: After a magnifique Olympic showing, Auger-Aliassime has a little extra motivation in NYC after he was controversially eliminated from the Cincinnati Open. With karma in his corner, Montréal’s finest is looking to bounce back under the brightest lights.

Tennis’ season finale begins tomorrow on ESPN networks in the U.S. and TSN in Canada, and will run through the women’s final on September 7th, followed by the men’s on September 8th. It’s been waiting for you…